Winter in Engadin - Also Sprach Zarathustra

In November 2025 I went to Engadin in my van to see what it's like travelling in Winter. I made my way to Silvaplanersee via the Julierpass after travelling through Thusis and Savognin and passing the Marmorerasee. I'd been in this area before and I knew that Nietzsche had spent quite a lot of time here in the 1880s so I parked the van at the top end of Silvaplanersee and set out on foot along the lake shore to find the Nietzsche Memorial Stone. I've been in Sils before and I've visited to the house that Nietzche used to stay in while he was in Engadin - that house is now the Nietzche musuem - but I had never seen the Nietzsche Stone. Apparently while he was here he was inspired to write "Also Sprach Zarathustra" and this large stone on the lake shore marks one of his favourite spots in Engadin.

In winter most camping grounds in Switzerland are closed from October until March, but the Morteratsch Camping Ground, located about 7 kilometers from Pontresina and at the base of the Morteratsch Glacier, is open all year round. So this is the place where most winter van travellers head for when they are in Engadin.

It’s a very large camping ground with lots of spaces for tents, small van and large mobile homes. There are also quite a lot of permanent caravans which I’m sure fill up during the holiday season. At this time of the year it’s not very crowded and I managed to find a good pitch not far away from the amenities. There’s a restaurant, which is closed at this time of the year and there’s as a small grocery store as well whick stocks all the essentials.

Diavolezza - The She-Devil

From the camping ground its only a short walk to the Morteratsch train station. From there I took the 10 minute train trip to the Diavolezza train station and then the cable car 2,978 meters to the top of the mountain. Talk about Top of the World! The views are spectacular in every direction but the main attraction is no doubt the Morteratsch Glacier.

St Moritz

I hadn’t been to St Moritz for well over 30 years so I was quite looking forward to visiting this world famous town again. Being the off-season I wasn’t expecting to see the rich and famous …. but you could see where they’d been! The way up from the train station to the town centre probably used to be a for most people a pretty steap uphill walk, or maybe a short bus ride, or for some a short limousine ride. Now you can catch the escalator! Reminiscent of the mid-levels escalators in Hong Kong, the St Moritz escalators are estimated to be around 80-90 meters long and cover the 40 meter vertical climb in less than 5 minutes. Probably quicker than a Rolls Royce!

While the old town of St Moritz is actually quite pretty in parts, and there are some beautiful buildings and wonderful hotels, the most spectacular part for me is the lake.